Draft-equalizer.



No. 658,667. Patented Sept. 25, I900. .1. w. MILLER. DRAFT EGUALIZER.

(Application filed Aug. 7, 1900.!

2 Sheets-$heet I.

(No Model.)

[NVEN'IUR Alfomey 'No. 658,667. Patented Sept. 25, I900. J. W."MILLER.

I DRAFT EUUALIZEB.

(Application filed Aug. 7. 1900.] No Model.) 2 SheetsSheet 2.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN W. MILLER, OF BISMARCK, ILLINOIS.

/ DRAFT-EQUALIZER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 658,667, dated. September 25, 1900.

Application filed August 7, 1900- Serial No. 26,138. (No model.)

To all whom, it ntay concern.-

Be it known that I, JOHN W. MILLER, acitizen of the United States,residing at Bismarck, in the county of Vermilion and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Draft-Equalizers; and I do declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention relates to draft-equalizers, and is more especially designed for use in connection with gang-plows where the four horses are employed abreast; and it has for its object to provide a simple, durable, and effective device for equalizing the draft among the animals; and it consists in the parts and combinations of parts hereinafter described and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, Figure 1 is a plan view of myinvention in position on the beams of a gang-plow; Fig. 2, a side elevation of one of the beams, showing the attachment thereto of my equalizer and the whiffletrees; Fig. 3, a vertical section on the line a or, looking in the direction of the arrows, Fig. 1; Figs. 4, 5, 6, 7, t5, 9, 10, 11, and 12, detail perspective views of various parts of the device.

Similar numerals refer to similar parts throughout all the views.

Referring to the drawings, the numeral 2 represents the beams of agang-plow, 3 the vertical clevises secured thereto, and 4 the horizontal clevis extending across the front of the beams. The clevises 5 and 4 are perforated for the attachment thereto of the equalizer, and they may be of the usual or any preferred type adapted for adjustment. To the clevises is attached the whiflietree by means of my improved equalizing device, said whiffletree consisting of the usual draw-bar 5, the doubletrees 6, and the singletrees 7, and it is supported from the horizontal clevis 4 by means of the adjustable brace-bars 8, 9, and 10. The bar 8 is formed with a forked rear end to embrace the clevis 4, and it is adjustably secured thereto by a bolt, and the front end of the said bar is split or otherwise formed with the elongated opening 11, and its upper prong is bent to one side, as at 28, and the prongs are connected together by bending up the lower prong thereof and welding it to the upper prong or otherwise securing the same togetherv to close the end of the opening 11 for a purpose to be described. (See Fig. 8.) The brace-bar 9 is also bifurcated or forked at one end to embrace the clevis 4 and is adjustably secured thereto by a bolt, and the bar 10 is formed with a right-angled bend, as at 12, and with a series of perforations 13 in the other end. (See Figs. 10 and 11.) The brace-bars 9 and 10 are-arranged with one end in the opening 11, with a curved evenerbar 14 (see Fig. 9) interposed between them and the Whole secured together by the bolt 15. The brace-bar 10 is adjustably secured by a bolt to the under side .of the draw-bar 5 and owing to the band 12 therein supports the said bar 5 on a level with the top of the brace-bar 8, the end of which extends under and projects beyond said bar 5. The bar 10 is 'sufliciently long to permit of the adjustment of the draw-bar in'or out or longitudinally thereon to enable the plow to take less or more land, as desired. It will be observed that the whiffletree is thus supported in the proper position and may be adjusted lengthwise, while the near and off ends aremaintained in the same horizontal plane; also, owing to the elongation and sidewise bending of the brace-bar 8, in this instance to the left, being a right-hand plow, thedrawbar is supported by the end of the bar 8 when the off team turns the plow or draws ahead, thereby preventing the said whiftletree dropping down.

The whifl'letree is connected at each end to the evener-bar 14 by draft-chains l6 and 17, the former being connected through a small clevis to the short arm of the evener-bar and the latter to the long arm by a similar clevis.

The chain 16 passes around a grooved wheel 18 and is connected to a bolt passed through the ends of the strap-irons 20, (see Fig. 4,) the upper one of said irons being bent upwardly, so as to extend over the drawbar 5, and the lower one extending under said bar and being secured by a bolt, which passes through the clip 21 and the draw-bar and doubletree, the latter resting on the end of said strap-iron through interposed washers. The draft-chain 17 extends around a grooved wheel 22 and is connected to the bent end of a clip 23 by a bolt, said clip embracing the draw-bar and doubletree at the other end of the whiifletree and is secured by a bolt there to. The clip 23 is composed of two pieces, having the bent and perforated ends 24, as shown in Fig. 12, and the end of the chain 17 is inserted between them and secured by a bolt.

- The wheels 19 and 22 are respectively mounted in the forked ends of the brackets 25 and 26, which are adjustably secured to the vertical clevises 3 at the ends of the beams 2 by bolts 27. These brackets are bent to one side and forked or split at their ends to embrace the clevises, said fork being at right angles to the fork for the wheels, and are in all respects similar to each other except that they are bent in opposite directions.

The closing of the end of the opening 11 by bending up the end of the lower prong of the fork forms a stop to limit the sway of the evener-bar 14 in turning the plow at corners or at the end of the furrow, so that the ofii team cannot pull so far ahead as to bring their end-the long endof the evener-bar back in line with the brace 9, thus pulling the short arm of the bar 14 so far around that the near team would have no leverage to pull it back against the other team. The sway of the evener-bar is arrested by the stop at the proper point to prevent its swinging back too far.

By moving the bolt which secures the bar 10 and the whifiiletree to the draw-bar from one perforation to another therein the plow may be adjusted to take more or less land.

The bending or casting of the ends of the bracket 26 at an angle to each other and arranging them on the beams so that they eX-.

tend in opposite directions therefrom increases the leverage of the draft-chains.

The drawings show the equalizer arranged for a right-hand plow, and to adapt it for a left-hand plow it is only necessary to bend the end of bar 8 and clip or clevis 23 in the opposite direction and shift the bars 9 and 10 to the other side and turn evener-bar 14 end for end.

Having thus described my invention, What I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. The combination, in a draft-equalizer, of the horizontal clevis, a brace-bar having an elongated opening secured to said clevis, a brace-bar secured at one end to said clevis and having its other end projecting into said elongated opening, a brace-bar secured to the draw-bar of the whifiletree at one end and having its other extending into said elongated opening, an evener-bar inserted through said opening, a bolt securing said brace-bars and evener-bar together, and means for connecting the arms of said evener-bar to the ends of the draw-bar.

2. The combination, in adraft-equalizer, of the vertical clevises, the angled brackets adjustably secured to said clevises, grooved wheels journaled in said brackets,-a horizon tal clevis, braces secured to said clevis, an evener-bar pivoted to said braces, a brace connecting said first-named braces and the drawbar of the whifiietree, and draft-chains connecting the opposite ends of the draw-bar to the opposite ends of the evener-bar.

3. The combination, in a draft-equalizer, of the vertical clevises, the brackets adj ustably secured to said clevises, the grooved wheels journaled in said brackets, the whiffletree, the draft-chains connected at one end to the ends of said whifiletree, the horizontal clevisbraces extending from said horizontal clevis, and an evener-bar supported by said braces and having its ends connected to said draftchains.

4=. The combination, in a draft-equalizer, of a brace having its end bent to one side, a brace connected at one end to said firstnamed brace, a draw-bar resting on said braces, an evener-bar pivoted to said braces, and draft-chains connecting the ends of said evener-bar and the ends of the draw-bar.

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

JOHN W. MILLER.

Witnesses:

D. L. OGDON, J. T. OGDON. 

